Category: Advice

With BT looking ever more likely to have its first strike in over quarter of a century if the latest offer isn’t accepted, thousands of businesses could be left without phones or internet during the strike which could take place in August 2010.

Where did you last have a great business conversation? Louise Third has just returned from a working visit to Uganda where she found herself teahcing enterprise skills to students in a remote rural region of the north east. The experience confirmed for her that we really are one big enterprising global community, so tell us about your business conversations in far-flung places.

Organisations seeking to drive profitability through growth rather than downsizing and restructuring are fuelling an upturn in job openings in the accounting and finance sector, according to the 2010 market report and salary survey from a leading financial recruitment company.

With the freemium revenue model, the most basic service level of a product is free for all, while more sophisticated service levels require users to pay tiered subscription fees based on usage levels.

Following a highly successful inaugural awards last year, Remote Employment in association with BT Business has launched The Remote Worker Awards and this year Business Matters is pleased to be joining as the media partner for the 2010 programme.

Employee relations in key performance areas are often neglected in a busy workforce, leaving staff confused and unhappy. We spoke to Haleem Ossman, who has twice won the national Investors in People Award, about the advice that he would give to businesses on how to manage this challenge.

The due diligence process consists of three main parts: screening due diligence, business due diligence, and legal due diligence. Each firm may have a specific process, but typically it involves reviewing the management team, the market potential, the product or service (and the need it meets), and the business model.

For a salesperson, cold calling can present one of the greatest challenges in their day. Get the most out of your cold calls by following these nine steps. And remember that staying positive, being persistent, and listening and adjusting to customer responses are the personal ingredients to help you succeed.

The London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has today launched an online advice surgery staffed by five ‘Business Doctors’ to help cure the most common day to day problems that companies face.

Tired of new social media services that promise to bring customers to the door? Well, the truth is consumers are using social media to connect, and you might be able to see business results by harnessing this. Here Richard Alvin looks at the options available to you.

Last year food giant Unilever dropped the ad agency it had been using for over a decade and put up a $10,000 bounty for new ideas to promote Peperami on TV. Here Fergus Dyer-Smith, Co-founder of Wooshii looks at how cost effective research can help grow your business.

People – in other words employees – grow businesses. As economic recovery begins in earnest small businesses need to recruit key staff with the right attributes if they are to succeed.